Veterans & Military Personnel

More on Veterans & Military Personnel

NORWICH, CT – Today, Congressman Joe Courtney (CT-02), Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces, released the following statement signaling support for upcoming legislation that would disapprove of President Trump’s recently announced national emergency declaration:

NORWICH, CT – Today, Representative Joe Courtney (CT-02), a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee, issued the following statement on President Trump’s declaration of a national emergency and plans to divert critical military construction funding to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.

Washington – This evening, Congressman Joe Courtney (CT-02), Chairman of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces, applauded a U.S. Court of Appeals ruling that presumptive service connections under the Agent Orange Act of 1991 also apply to Blue Water Navy Vietnam veterans.

Washington – Congressman Joe Courtney (CT-02), Chairman of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces, released the following statement on President Trump and Republicans’ decision to accept a deal to temporarily reopen the federal government following 35 days of a partial government shutdown:

“Forty-three years after the end of the Vietnam War, our government is still failing to properly care for servicemembers who were exposed to the toxic chemical known as Agent Orange,” said Congressman Courtney. “The Agent Orange Exposure Fairness Act is a long overdue reform to the way the Veterans Administration recognizes the claims of Agent Orange victims. This bill would not be possible without the tireless efforts of one of my constituents, Mr. Gerry Wright, who has singlehandedly crisscrossed the country to raise the alarm about untreated Agent Orange cases. It’s a commonsense bill which will remove one of the most frustrating and onerous barriers that has denied veterans critical assistance for decades. It’s time to correct an injustice, it’s time to pass this bill.”

Washington, DC – Today, Congressman Joe Courtney (CT-02) voted to ensure that federal workers who have been furloughed or who have worked without pay during the current partial government shutdown are compensated fairly and expeditiously. The Government Employee Fair Treatment Act (S.

“The Senate’s failure to pass this bill last year and finally right this wrong for our Vietnam-era veterans was one of the most disappointing aspects of the last session of Congress,” Courtney said. “While the House acted in a bipartisan and unanimous way to pass the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act in 2018, the objections of a small number of Senators blocked action that would have made this bill law. That this bill is being introduced in the first days of the 116th Congress demonstrates our ongoing commitment to ensure that we do right by all our veterans exposed to agent orange, whether on land or on the sea.”

In advance of Veterans Day, Representative Joe Courtney (CT-02) announced that the American Legion has endorsed the Agent Orange Exposure Fairness Act (H.R. 6566), legislation he has introduced to remove onerous manifestation requirements from certain diseases, which the VA has linked to Agent Orange exposure.

Courtney hosted veterans representing several area organizations for a monthly veterans advisory board meeting at his district office in Norwich. In attendance at the meeting was the commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Veterans Affairs Thomas J. Saadi, who addressed the group with updates from his department and responded to questions.
Specifically, Courtney spoke about current issues that he said are important for Norwich area veterans, including declaring his strong opposition to a July 12 policy change from the Department of Defense that will prevent service members with greater than 16 years of service from transferring their Post-9/11 G.I. Bill benefits to eligible family members.
“To scale back this benefit, it’s really blindsiding to people,” Courtney said.